It all started with the trip to the Sealine Resort outside of Mesaieed towards the Saudi border. The resort is on the East Coast of Qatar facing the Indian Ocean (if you are looking for it on Google Maps...). Once we arrived it was time to let the tires down to 15psi per tire. This is so we can float like a butterfly over the soft sand of the desert ;)
As soon as the introductions were made with the other 5 vehicles and their passengers it was time to head out over the dunes. To get the "newbie" ready for the ascents the very first dune we saw we had to go up. Drop it into 2nd and put your foot down and don't let up. Good news, we made it! Once we were at the top, we had to come down... Luckily the leader of the convoy decided it would be better if we drove across the tops of the dunes before we made a major drop.
This is where the fun began. Remembering that I had to keep my foot "in it" all the time, we successfully navigated the tops of the dunes and some crazy side slopes. Now it was time to get to the flats to make to the next set of dunes. This is where I learned that soft sand is really just the warm version of wet snow. On the last side slope, I slid down sideways and got stuck. So I threw it in 4 Low and backed out and gave it the "old college try" once again. Piece of cake. Made it out without having to be pulled out.
Big C 1 - Dunes 0.
Now we made it over the first set of dunes and on our way to the next ones. Again, we had to go up. I made it up the small one, tried to "High Mark" (drive up a slope as far as you can, turn down and floor it to make it up the other side) and power up the other side. I missed my gear shift and bogged down. So here comes 4 Low again and we back down almost the entire dune to try again. I win again.
Big C 2 - Dunes 0.
Life is good at this point, the dunes are getting a little smaller and more like rolling hills as we start to get closer to the Inland Sea. Not too much more for exciting dune bashing going on here. Once we made it to the beach, we set up camp, swam, ate, and just hung out. I will blog more about the campsite next time.
After 5hrs on the beach, it was time to head home to beat the darkness that falls at around 5:30pm. All day long I heard, "the first time everyone gets stuck". I thought, "yeah right, if I made it out here, I can make it back." Well I was wrong. I think it was the goal of the driver to get me stuck 'case we were going up and over some crazy stuff at this point.
The place I got stuck was a bit of a pain in the butt. We watched a couple trucks go through and they struggled when they shouldn't have. So with a little coaching from the rear, I took a different path...maybe not the best one after all. Buried up to the running boards. This required a little digging to clear the tires and a tow. I guess it had to happen some time, but this one sucked. After a little ribbing from the other drivers, we were off again. We were off to the final challenge of the day.
Big C 2 - Dunes 2 (two point gain for the tow-out)
This was a massive challenge that even had me a little worried. Most of the day I was very calm and cool. This one had me thinking and watching intently as the other guys took their run at it. Even the lead driver got stuck at the top in his fancy Patrol, so how the heck was my Pajero going to make it??? Well, it was my turn. Started off in 2nd gear to get up the speed to do another high mark. I pushed it father than any of the other tracks, geared down, turned back down the hill, and floored it. The moster of a climb caused the engine to work like it hadn't all day long. We bounced, bobbed and weaved trying to stay in contact with the ground and not get bogged down at the same time.... No big deal, I kicked the ass of the monster dune and completely redeemed myself :)
Big C 4 - Dunes 2 (two point gain for the climb and the FU to the lead driver that was being a little cheeky - my Pajero made it first try!)
Now it was time to head back. It was getting a little dark so headlights were on full blast as we cruised back across the flats at 100km/hr. That was pretty fun.
It was a good day, with lots of excitement. Now we know we can head out across the dunes for a little fun in the sun at the Inland Sea (to be blogged about at a later date).
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